Garment stay



April 29, 1952 w. M. GOLDEN 2,595,133

GARMENT STAY Filed Sept. 8, 1948 WZZZ'am M 502E272 ATTORNEY Patented Apr. 29, 1952 UNITED STATES,PATENT OFFICE GARMENT STAY William M. Golden, Montgomery, Ala.

Application September 8, 1948, Serial No. 48,220

1 Claim. 1

This invention relates to garment stays or stiifeners and particularly to garment stays adapted to be readily applied to portions of garments to maintain said portions in the desired shape or position, and also to be readily removable therefrom as when the garment is to be laundered, cleaned or pressed.

The object of the present invention is to provide a garment stay which may be readily applied to the garment without the necessity of sewing, clamping or the use of any tools or implements.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device of the class mentioned which may be readily removed from the garment when desired and reused on the same or other garments.

A further object of the invention is to provide a garment stay of the type under consideration which shall be of simple construction and of low cost to manufacture.

Other objects will appear hereinafter.

With these objects in view the invention consists generally in a strip of relatively stiif material which may be formed of any suitable material such as plastic, metal, fabric, stiff paper or cardboard, in combination with adhesive means for attaching the strip in position on a garment, the adhesive preferably being such as to readily adhere to a fabric, and readily separate therefrom by slight manipulation without injury to the fabric.

The invention further consists in various details of construction and arrangements of parts as will be described hereinafter and particularly pointed out in the claim.

The invention will be more readily understood by reference to the accompanying drawings forming a part of this specification and in which:

Fig. 1 is a view of the inner face of a collar at the corner thereof, illustrating a stay embodying the present invention, affixed adjacent the front edge of the collar.

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing a modified form of stay afiixed adjacent the lower edge,

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the stay illustrated in Fig. 1,

Fig. 4 is a section on the line 4-4 of Fig. 1 upon an enlarged scale,

Fig. 5 is a plan view, of a stay similar to that illustrated in Fig. 2,

Fig. 6 is a section on the line 6-6 of Fig. 5, upon an enlarged scale,

Fig. 7 is a perspective view of a further modification of the invention,

Fig. 8 is a plan view of a stay provided with a temporary protective covering for the adhesive side thereof,

Fig. 9 is a section on the line 9-9 of Fig. 8, and

Fig. 10 is a section of a further modification.

Referring to the drawings, the stiffening member may consist of a section of wire H], as illustrated in Figs. 1, 3 and 4; or a fiat strip of material It as shown in remaining figures of the drawings. These stiifening elements may be made of any suitable material, and are preferably as thin as is consistent with the degree of rigidity required.

Each of the members In or ID is provided with adhesive means for aflixing the device in proper position, said means preferably comprising a strip H of flexible material, such as fabric having an adhesive material I2 on one side thereof. The strips H are appreciably longer and wider than the stiffening elements Ill-l0 so as to extend beyond and completely cover the same when in position on the garment, and providing a circumjacent gummed portion surrounding the strip lll or H! for adhesion to said garment, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

Ordinary adhesive tape has been found a satisfactory material from which to make the strips ll, although the invention is not limited to the use of such tape for this purpose. By using adhesive tape, or strips of any suitable flexible material with adhesive applied to one side thereof, the adhesive will serve to secure the strips H3 or In to the strips H as well as to affix the assembled device to the garment. Any suitable ad hesive may be employed such as plastic, rubber, resins etc., and is preferably of such consistency that the device may be secured in position by mere pressure of the thumb or fingers. However, an adhesive requiring the use of heat may be used, in which case a pressing iron may be employed in securing the device in place.

The devices are preferably supplied to the market in the form illustrated in Figs. 8 and 9, wherein the stiffening element It! or I0 is afiixed to the adhesive strip and the gummed side covered by a readily removable gauze or other protective cover IE to preserve the adhesive qualities of the strips II and prevent contamination by foreign substances adhering thereto.

In Fig. 7 is illustrated a modified form wherein the adhesive I2 is applied directly to the stiffening member thereby eliminating the flexible adhesive strip 1 I, and the process of assembling the elements.

In the several forms above described, the stiffening member comprises a single strip of material. However, said member may be made of laminated or multiple ply material as indicated at in Fig. of the drawings.

It should be understood that the stays embodying the present invention may be formed with rounded or blunt ends as indicated at M, or provided with at least one tapered or pointed end H: as shown in Figs. 1, 3 and 5, so as to reach into the corner of a pointed tip collar C without extending to or beyond the edge thereof.

The stay members I0 or 10' may be of any desired length or shape, although preferably substantially straight, and of any desired cross-section.

While the invention is primarily devised for application to soft or semi-soft collars attached to men's shirts to prevent the points of said collars from curling or rolling out of shape, and is so illustrated in the drawings; it is to be understood that the device may be applied to other garments, such as dresses etc., without departing from the scope of the invention as stated in the following claim.

I claim:

A garment stay comprising a strip of flexible,

non-resilient material, an adhesive on and entirely covering one side of said strip, a strip of relatively stifi material of less width and less length than the first said strip and adhering thereto by said adhesive with the edges thereof remote from the edges of the first said strip providing a circumjacent adhesive portion, the outer face of said relatively stiff strip being free of adhesive, and the circumjacent adhesive portion of the first said strip providing means whereby said stay may be repeatedly attached to a garment by manual pressure, and is readily removable therefrom for further use by slight manipulation.

WILLIAM M. GOLDEN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS 

